King of the City
by La'Fae Villiers
Summary: This takes place after Arkham City. Two-Face has a plot and teams with Riddler and Harley. Interesting plot, unsure if I should continue. I'm a decent writer, so I hope you enjoy. Rated M for language, maybe some sexual references. Review if you want.
1. Green

**So I love Batman, first off. Obviously. I had to write a fanfiction for school and this is the first chapter. I'm not sure if this is any good, it takes place immediately after Arkham City. I did a lot of background information because my class in school isn't that educated in Batmanology. Should I continue this?**

Two-Face flips his coin again, catches it, and examines it in the dim light. He turns it over and rubs the etched side. His father had given him this coin so long ago, and then Falcone had ruined half of his face with acid, merging his psyche with the idea of duality. He just assumed the coin was in the plan from the start, though he didn't know this was to be the plan.

"We've been in hiding because of that Cat." Two-Face spits, grasping his coin tight in his fist. He closes his right eye, trying to block out the memories. His left eye stays wide open, mimicking that side of his mouth. The acid burns have contorted his face beyond repair, he knew this. He accepted this. "She's humiliated me twice in this place, and gotten away with it. Her and her Bat have destroyed any hope of me completing this plan."

His wants were simple enough, he had thought. All he had to do was control half the population of Arkham City and have them take out the other half. He would rule this experimental prison. When the city of Gotham had built this broken idea from the earth, they thought it was the perfect solution. Keep the bad guys away from the innocent civilians. Simple, right? Not simple enough. A new type of government was forged in the absence of authority.

"Joker was a huge obstacle before, I admit. He was a tough one. He was the reason we couldn't take hold of this city. At first." Two-Face flips his coin and lets it fall on his wooden desk in the cellar of the abandoned steel mill next to his twin .45 ACPs. "Joker's dead now."

"And you're implying that Batman is the only thing standing between you and total domination?" The voice was of someone Two-Face had invited, but not welcomed. The tone was like a viper to him, mocking him.

"What _else _would be in my way?" He hisses back to the condescending tone, narrowly avoiding the use of degrading language. He had to have this person on his side, he couldn't do this alone.

"General intelligence, I would presume." Comes the answer. Two-Face snatches up his coin and turns sharply on his heel.

"You are our _guest_. Please behave as one." He snaps at the thin man sitting casually in a chair at the center of the room. He leans forward.

"My dear bipolar friend, why should I even _consider_ helping you? I could take the Bat out by myself. I've been a challenge to him since the beginning, I'm in control." Riddler says to the flustered man before him. He leans back and secretly braces himself for Two-Face's next outburst of questionable intellect, but it doesn't happen. The man in the split colored suit just stands there, raw smile stretched over the undamaged side of his face.

"Because we have something you want." He speaks with such confidence, that it irks Riddler. He cocks his head to the side and stares through the illuminated dust at Two-Face.

"Go on, though I seriously doubt it." He adds the last part to conserve his superiority, a point that Two-Face ignores completely.

"Batman's identity." He stands perfectly still as he delivers the news, not wanting to distract Riddler's expert attention away from the task at hand.

"You're bluffing." The red haired man settles back in his chair, accepting his logic as fact. Two-Face laughs fully, not one to tone anything down, but to amplify times two.

"Oh, but I'm not. I went dark after Catwoman…" He adjusts his collar. "ambushed me."

"Obviously." Riddler rolls his eyes.

"And I took a quick trip to the tower. I'm sure you remember that, my green friend? Remember the tower that blew up? I'm sure you do, because soon after we found out about Strange and Ra's Al Ghul." Dr. Hugo Strange was a deranged man that thought up the idea of Arkham City, all to achieve his goal of killing Batman and Joker. After the tower blew up and destroyed him, it was discovered that one of Batman's enemies, Ra's Al Ghul, was actually using Strange as a puppet all along, in his plan to destroy most of the human population on the planet. Two-Face almost found the news of Ra's Al Ghul's plan exciting, until he realized that Ra's would kill him too. After the news went public, Ra's disappeared.

"You're mocking me. Of course I know about all of this. I was there, if you don't remember? Next you'll tell me about the new security. Thank you for the modern history lesson Mr. Dent." Riddler isn't one to usually raise his voice, but his pathological need to prove himself more intelligent than anyone else is his fault at times.

"Call us by our preferred name." Two-Face snaps.

"Fine, Two-Face." Riddler crosses his arms. "Get to the point."

"We went to the tower and found some of Strange's notes. He had notes of the interviews he had conducted with us, and then some with you. And finally, Batman." He rubs the clean face of his coin.

"How is that interesting? I knew this already."

"But he didn't call Batman, Batman. He used his real name. He knew Batman's real name, his identity. And now I do." The smile that spreads on Two-Face's face is one of pure joy. Pure, sick joy. "So what is that oversized brain of yours thinking?"

"Oddly enough, I believe you." Riddler strokes his chin, eyes flicking across the floor in thought. "In reality, you have no reason to lie to me, and we both know I'll always be one step ahead of you." He looks up at the duo of a man. "What do you want?"

"Tsk tsk, I can't let you get _too_ far ahead of me, can I?" Two-Face smirks in spite of Riddler's obvious annoyance. "All we need you to focus on right now is Harley."

"Harley Quinn? Why would we need her?" Riddler asks. Two-Face thinks for a moment before flipping his coin. Clean side.

"We need her, and you're the one who can get her. Use your brain for Christ's sake." Two-Face says calmly. Riddler had had his run in's with Strange, each of which he had planned. He was the only one in this twisted little penitentiary that could talk to him without being caught or interviewed. They had a common goal; to destroy Batman. But what with Strange gone, the man standing before him might be his only hope. Riddler grips his cane and stands up.

"Fine, _Harvey_, I'll play your little game, but here's a riddle for you to ponder while I retrieve our obsessive pigtailed friend." Two-Face cringes in disgust at his name before motioning for the Riddler to continue. "At night they come without being fetched. By day they are lost without being stolen."

"Easy one. Stars." Two-Face smiles, enjoying that he may have outsmarted the smartest. Riddler puts on his hat and gives a hint of a grin.

"Remember your answer, Harvey. Because if this doesn't work, you won't ever see them again." He straightens his green suit before exiting the dank room, leaving Two-Face behind to think. He flips his coin. Defaced side.

"We're in motion. They're as good as dead."

**So, I have chapter 2 written, but I'm uneasy about uploading it. Leave a review if you'd like. Should the show go on?**


	2. Breaking News

**So, I decided to put up the next chapter. I admit that it's still a bit introductory, but this is a new writing style for me so I'm allowing myself to ease into it. Enjoy!**

Bruce keeps the volume on low, so he can hardly hear it at all. Vicki Vale is the reporter speaking to the camera, her blonde hair shining in the afternoon sun. Bruce recalls saving her from inside Arkham City not too long ago. He can't read her lips, but he knows what she's talking about. The volume is increased and Bruce turns to face Tim Drake.

"How can you even hear that?" He's still in his Robin suit.

"That was the point." Bruce Wayne stands to his full height of six foot two and walks over to one of his computers. He stares back at himself in the monitor's reflection. The volume is increased more.

"It is confirmed that the death of Joker was caused by the aftereffects of the chemical Titan. As we have previously reported, Titan is a highly unstable chemical that can practically transform the user into a super human. Back in Arkham Asylum, the Joker used Titan to try and defeat Batman." Vicki's voice announces through the high tech speakers surrounding the HD screen. "As anticipated, there are no actual mourners here at his funeral, but there seem to be some protesters." The sound of shouting fills the air as some protesters are shown on screen. One person steps forward and voices his opinions.

"He shouldn't be buried in Gotham! We want him out once and for all!" This statement is followed by a swell of support from the other protesters.

"They think that will make a difference? He's already dead." Tim sits in a chair as Bruce turns around.

"They don't see it that way." He reaches for his coffee cup as he watches the screen. Vicki is saying something about the security measures of Joker's coffin.

"Sir, Mister Grayson is on the phone asking for you." Alfred is suddenly beside the duo in the Batcave, a phone waiting in his hand. Bruce remembers the heartbroken acrobat well. After all, Dick Grayson was his first Robin. He shed his Robin image and adopted the solo hero role he had always craved, as Nightwing.

"Can you take a message?" Bruce sips his lukewarm coffee and pretends to focus on Joker's coffin being lifted above his gaping grave.

"Master Wayne, it's in regards to Miss Kyle." Alfred raises his light eyebrows as he extends his hand further. Bruce tries to keep his mind off of Selina Kyle, but fails. Selina Kyle, or Catwoman, is a villain and he should treat her as such, but both Bruce and Selina know there's something more there. He's always had a sort of weakness for her, more so than he'd care to admit. He grudgingly takes the phone.

"What is it?" His low voice growls into the phone.

"Bruce? Hey, it's Dick. I just got back from Arkham City."

"And?" Bruce urges him on, not one to waste any time.

"Harvey has Selina." The words are a slap in the face to Bruce. He knows that Selina is residing in Arkham City, but he was sure that she could hold her own, especially against a man she'd beaten on several occasions.

"What do you mean?" Bruce is nearly speechless and he can sense the two other men in the room staring at him.

"On my way out I heard Two-Face's goons talking about how he has her tied up in his office. I couldn't go after her myself." A sigh echoes through the phone, and then Nightwing speaks again, more controlled this time. "I had to tell you, I don't know her like you do."

"Thank you." Bruce says before clicking off the phone and handing it back to Alfred. He goes back to sipping his coffee and watching the television.

"Is, uh, everything alright?" Tim asks cautiously.

"No need to worry, Master Tim, Master Bruce knows what the right thing to do is." Alfred gives Bruce a small nod before he leaves to go back to the main part of the mansion. Bruce mulls the options over in his mind.

"Why aren't you there?" Tim points to the television as he removes his mask.

"Batman at Joker's funeral? I don't think so." Bruce finishes his coffee and throws the cup in the trash.

"No, like _you_. As in Bruce Wayne. This could be a great point to bring up in your campaign against Arkham City. This proves it's a ticking time bomb." Tim eggs on, throwing his hood back.

"I've thought about it." Bruce leans against a stainless steel table and closes his eyes. "It's not the right thing to do."

"Then what is?" Tim stands from his black leather chair and faces his friend.

"I have to go back into Arkham City and find Selina. She saved me once when she didn't have to." Bruce sighs, in near disbelief at what he's saying. "I just need some help." Tim smiles eagerly, ready to be a hero.

"Okay, yeah. I'll help." He puts his hood back on, ready to go.

"No." Bruce holds up a hand and stares right into Tim's eyes. "If Two-Face has gotten clever enough to catch Selina, he must have more help than we thought. I need help from someone close to Joker, who has nothing to lose. Someone who knows Arkham City in every way. Someone unexpected. If Two-Face has gotten clever enough to catch Selina, he must have more help than we thought."

"What? Like who?" If Tim is upset over Bruce's words, he's an expert at hiding it. He crosses his arms and stares off somewhere behind Bruce.

"No! You can't just put him in the ground!" A voice screeches from the television. Both Tim and Bruce look up immediately. Standing in handcuffs with a dozen armed guards around her is Harley Quinn. She's watching with doll-like blue eyes as her love is lowered into the ground. "My puddin'! You can't do this to him! You just can't!" She lunges toward the coffin sobbing, her pigtails sagging, her whiny yet sweet voice dying down to a whisper.

"Someone like her." Bruce says gravely before pushing off the table to get suited up.

**Not too painful, right? Well review if you like it, or even if you don't. I'd love to hear critique, feedback, or predictions! Thank you for the reviews so far as well!**


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